The satellite tv for pc broadband race continues to ramp up this week, after the British communications regulator granted a licence to a possible rival of Elon Musk’s Starlink service.
Ofcom introduced it has “granted an earth station community licence to Amazon Kuiper Companies Europe SARL for its non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite tv for pc system, which is also called ‘Kuiper’”.
It comes after Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket final month had safely reached its supposed orbit. The 320-foot rocket stands 30 tales tall and is partially reusable.
Venture Kuiper
The New Glenn rocket is Blue Origin’s reply to SpaceX’s heavy payload service rocket, Falcon 9.
New Glenn and different rockets (from the likes of Arianespace, United Launch Alliance, and even SpaceX) might be used to assist construct Venture Kuiper.
Venture Kuiper is Amazon’s long-touted broadband web satellite tv for pc constellation, that can finally rival the Starlink community.
Venture Kuiper‘s preliminary satellite tv for pc constellation design contains 3,232 satellites in earth low orbit.
To date there are solely two take a look at Venture Kuiper satellites (generally known as Kuipersat-1 and Kuipersat-2) in orbit, so the Kuiper satellite tv for pc constellation has to nonetheless be constructed earlier than the service can lastly rival Starlink, which on the finish of January 2025 had 6,957 working satellites in orbit.
There may be additionally one other rival to Starlink and Venture Kuiper, particularly British satellite tv for pc web agency OneWeb, which had merged Paris-based Eutelsat in 2022.
Ofcom licence
Regardless of having simply two satellites at present, issues are transferring ahead for Venture Kuiper after the UK’s Ofcom granted it community licence.
This resolution means Kuiper might be authorised to supply satellite tv for pc connectivity companies similar to excessive pace, low latency broadband to clients within the UK – who’re sometimes situated in rural or distant places the place there is probably not another broadband connectivity choices.
Ofcom stated Kuiper is permitted to function in Ka band frequencies between 27.5-27.9405 GHz, 28.4545-28.9485 GHz, and 29.5-30 GHz.
Individually, Ofcom has additionally in the present day introduced it’s releasing additional radio spectrum within the 27.5-30 GHz (28 GHz) and 32 GHz bands.
“In keeping with our mission to assist innovation, funding and progress, in the present day’s choices present additional alternative for brand new companies delivering higher connectivity for folks and companies within the UK – and significantly to these in tougher to achieve rural communities,” stated Nina Percival, Director of Spectrum Administration and Authorisation.
Amazon in October 2022 expanded its Venture Kuiper manufacturing functionality, with the event of a devoted, 172,000-square-foot satellite tv for pc manufacturing facility in Kirkland, Washington.
